winter

On Oreos, Ice Cream + Snow Stress

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Breyers Golden Oreo ice creamMaybe it’s snow stress. Maybe my sweet tooth has turned very nostalgic for the treats of my youth. Maybe it’s a bit of both. Either way, I’ve become rather preoccupied with all things Oreo. Cannot wait to try the S’mores Oreos!

When I was in the store recently, I noticed Breyers Golden Oreo Cookies & Cream. I could not resist.  Like most days now, another snow storm was imminent and this flavor seemed quite comforting. It was!

The cookie ice cream combo reminds me of Steve’s Ice Cream from back in the day.

Breyers actually has quite a cool thing going on with their Breyers Blasts! line of ice creams. They have all sorts of cookie, cake and candy combos.

Again, we in the Boston area are preparing for another snow storm later today and I will be doing some grocery shopping soon. I may indulge in another flavor to ride-out the storm.

What about you? Any favorite sweets to deal with the snow?

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Photo Credit: Breyers

Snow, Snow, Snow, Snow. Please Go!

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snow banks on sidewalk roasted sweet potatoes collageIf it’s Monday, then it must be a post about snow! It feels like everyday it’s snowing or we are recovering from more snow. Plus, last night the wind chill was in the double digits below zero. It was scary cold!

Tonight ABC nightly news started coverage from right here in Quincy to talk about the horrible weather. You know it’s serious, when the national news starts in your city!

Here are some more pictures to give you an idea of what we are dealing with here. The large picture to the left is a view down my street. Below to the right is the walkway to my car. My car is behind the snow bank and I won’t even go into the details of the ordeal to back out. I have to to maneuver around the snow bank and try not hitting my neighbors’ cars. In order to get back into the space again, I have to go up another street and come down the hill, so I can drive in at the right angle. I just wanted to cry after backing out the first time. Today it wasn’t quite as bad. G has been digging my car out each time and he made more space.

Above that picture is a pan of roasted sweet potatoes. When it’s cold out, there’s nothing like roasting some vegetables to warm things up in my apartment. Plus, they were so good! I microwaved them first, then cut them up and added olive oil, garlic powder, ground ginger, ground rosemary and sea salt.

Hopefully you had a nice long weekend and your parking situation did not make you cry! Let’s hope this is a good week!

Monday in Collage

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Monday in Collage
It seems that the post that I wrote last Monday could very well have been recycled for this Monday as well. The T was a mess again with the new snow storm that is currently going on.

While in my opinion, it should have been shut down before the snow even started based on what happened last week, the train service is shut down through the end of Tuesday. Also, finally the Governor declared a State of Emergency for Massachusetts. Hopefully, with additional equipment now being requested, the snow will be removed and it will be safer to get around. We’ll see. There’s supposed to be another storm coming on Thursday and on Sunday. It’s just too much!!!

Above are some pictures that I took on Instagram that I thought I’d share here. The snowy scene is from my backyard. The table and chairs have almost disappeared under the snow! I finally tried the Red Velvet Oreos. They are so good! But I gobbled them all up really fast, so they are not pictured here.

Luckily, when I went food shopping before the storm, there was an enterprising Girl Scout in the store selling boxes of cookies. People were swarming to get them! I got three and had some Thin Mints today. A wonderful classic. Since I ate all the Oreos, G finished that box up. I also bought the Thanks-A-Lot and Cranberry Citrus Crisps. I’ll be opening those soon! The boxes are much smaller than they used to be, so they don’t last as long.

Also, in the midst of all this snow, the paperwhites that my mother gave me for Christmas have bloomed. They smell so good and remind me that spring will arrive eventually. It will be a very nice change.

How is the weather where you are?

Subway Stories: Keep Calm

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Keep Calm Red Line MBTA Deep breath. Stay calm.

It will be okay. It’s only a commute.

In case you haven’t heard, the Red Line has been a nightmare recently. Not that it isn’t awful a great deal of the time, but it’s really awful today. In a whole other dimension awful.

Those of us who rely on the Red Line to get to work are being advised not to take it. Seriously.

To seek alternative means. I’m working on getting a ride, but the car is still being dug out of the snow.

So I’m trying to be productive and calm myself down.

Deep breath.

I started thinking that I needed to keep calm and carry on. Or actually to keep calm and avoid the Red Line. So I decided to make a nice little image with one of my old photos and introduce the Subway Stories series to the new blog.

Maybe this blog post will go viral and earn me all kinds of money, so I don’t have to commute on the Red Line ever again!

Yup. Realistic. *sigh*

Deep breath.

Okay. Carry on…..

On Falling Snow + Drinking Wine

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wine bottleWith virtually no snow up until now, all of us in the Boston area were just waiting for the other snow shoe to drop. And drop it did. I wonder if people will stop talking about the Blizzard of ’78 after this?

The Blizzard of 2015 will go down in the history books.  And we’re supposed to be getting two more instances of snow in the next few days. *sigh*

My street is still not plowed down to the pavement and snow banks are so high that it’s hard to see around them. It’s the worst part of the winter. When you have to hope for the best as you cross the street while walking or making a turn while driving.

Luckily, there is a certain coziness during winter storms. As long as the power stays on and the fridge is fully stocked. Yesterday I did some cooking and baking.

Also, G and I had some wine. I bought it months ago, but we never drank it. The storm seemed like a good excuse and we drank it while watching Netflix. It was our first time trying Liebfraumilch, which is a blended German wine that apparently is hated by many serious wine drinkers.

I am no wine snob; there are many wines that I like. I usually will choose a sweet cocktail over wine though. So you can judge my recommendation of this wine based on that. But I liked it. Not too sweet, but sweet enough. It felt smooth. We both found it enjoyable. And the price was right.

According to a tweet by Only in Boston, each household in this area would be opening between 12 -15 bottles of wine during the storm. I guess we drink way less than our neighbors. But that’s okay.

I’m curious. What were you eating and drinking during the storm?

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Photo Credit: Schmitt Söhne Liebfraumilch